Environmental groups file suit over water standards

LOS ANGELES (AP) &#8212; Two environmental groups on Monday sued Los Angeles County and the city of Malibu in an attempt to force them to clean up contaminated water and urban runoff discharged into coastal waters.

The two lawsuits, filed in U.S. District Court, come nine months after the groups filed their intent to sue.

The Natural Resources Defense Council and the Santa Monica Baykeeper claim in the suits that the county and city disregarded clean water standards. Data kept by the county showed Malibu Creek and the Santa Clara, Los Angeles and San Gabriel rivers exceed safe levels of cyanide, aluminum and fecal coliform, the groups said.

&quot;It's time to stop going through the motions of fighting water pollution, and actually clean up the water,&quot; said David Beckman, who heads the coastal water quality project at Natural Resources Defense Council.

Mark Pestrella, assistant deputy director for the county Department of Public Works, said the lawsuits lacked merit.

Pestrella noted that the county developed a program a decade ago that was overseen by the regional water quality control board to pinpoint the type and source of pollutants flowing into the bay.

&quot;We are committed to keeping our waterways safe and protecting the health&quot; of residents, Pestrella said in a statement.

A call to the city of Malibu was not immediately returned.

The lawsuits also sought to enforce a &quot;no discharge&quot; rule in a coastal preserve along the northern Los Angeles County shoreline.